-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Two days ago , I learned about two young people killed by drug gangs in the border city of Nuevo Laredo , Mexico , their corpses bound and hung from a bridge . Unfortunately , drug murders happen so often in Mexico that they are not news anymore . This time was different .

The murders have received a lot of international attention because the bodies were found with handwritten messages claiming that the couple had been killed for snitching on the cartels via the Internet . Is it possible that these murders grabbed more attention than last month 's 50-person massacre because of the connection to social media ?

As a technologist , I find it easy to get swept up in the techno-utopian view of how social technologies are changing the world for the better . I do believe it . For example , Twitter hashtags are saving lives in Mexico by empowering citizens to report shootings and helping others to avoid them . However , those same hashtags have landed three people in jail on charges of `` terrorism '' for supposedly spreading false rumors online .

Now we learn about the murders of supposed `` Internet snitchers . ''

It is not clear whether the couple was killed for actually posting something online or whether their murder was used as an opportunity to scare people away from social media . In any case , the messages against online reporting might indicate that social media sites are seen as a threat . For example , one of the notes on the bodies named blogdelnarco.com , a website run anonymously on Google 's Blogger platform .

Social technologies , like other peer-to-peer technologies , are incredibly disruptive . Social media open new opportunities for empowering the disenfranchised , but they also create big new challenges -- some so big that people 's lives might hang in the balance . There has been a heated discussion in the tech world about online anonymity , especially the `` real names only '' policies of some social networks .

Social media is seen as neutral ground by people in Mexico . They might not trust their government or even their neighbors , but they do trust big-name , high-tech companies to provide an unbiased platform that empowers them to connect with others .

These events in Mexico are another reminder of the responsibility that high-tech companies have when providing these empowering platforms . Yes , these are for-profit enterprises , but with great tech power comes great responsibility -LRB- as Stan Lee might say -RRB- .

The American media are in a privileged position to report safely on what is happening in Mexico . American journalists can , and should , amplify the voices of those who are unheard . Mexican voices present in social media speak of a complex problem with just as much relevance for the U.S. as Mexico . After all , the drug war is a thorny geopolitical conflict closely linked to U.S. financial stability and national security . The American public partially funds the war : via taxes on one side and through drug consumption on the other .

My hope is that the fascination for social media communication will drive better coverage of systemic issues at the core of the conflict , such as debates on decriminalization , arms and human trafficking .

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andres Monroy-Hernandez .

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Writer says murdered couple in Mexico may have been revenge for blogging on drug cartels

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He says social media can do good in world , but disrupts too and is seen as threat by some

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He says there 's tech world controversy over `` real name '' policy of some social networks

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Writer : Tech firms must consider their duty ; U.S. media must amplify Mexican voices